North Carolina 2025-2026 Regular Session

North Carolina House Bill H804 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New		Differences
1	1		GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA
2	2		SESSION 2025
3		-	H 1
4		-	HOUSE BILL 804
	3	+	H D
	4	+	HOUSE BILL DRH10004-MLf-6
	5	+
5	6
6	7
7	8		Short Title: Human Life Protection Act of 2025. (Public)
8		-	Sponsors: Representatives Kidwell and Moss (Primary Sponsors).
9		-	For a complete list of sponsors, refer to the North Carolina General Assembly web site.
10		-	Referred to: Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House
11		-	April 8, 2025
12		-	H804 -v-1
	9	+	Sponsors: Representative Kidwell.
	10	+	Referred to:
	11	+
	12	+	DRH10004 -MLf-6
13	13		A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1
14	14		AN ACT TO PROHIBIT ABORTION AFTER CONCEPTION EXCEPT WHEN NECESSARY 2
15	15		TO PRESERVE THE LIFE OF THE MOTHER. 3
16	16		The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts: 4
17	17		5
18	18		PART I. TITLE 6
19	19		SECTION 1.1. This act shall be known as "The Human Life Protection Act of 2025." 7
20	20		8
21	21		PART II. PROHIBITION ON ABORTION 9
22	22		SECTION 2.1. Article 11 of Chapter 14 of the General Statutes is amended by 10
23	23		adding a new section to read: 11
24	24		"§ 14-45.2. Abortion prohibited. 12
25	25		(a) Definitions. – The following definitions apply in this section: 13
26	26		(1) Abortion. – The act of using or prescribing an instrument, a drug, a medicine, 14
27	27		or any other substance, device, or means with the intent to cause the death of 15
28	28		an unborn child of a woman known to be pregnant. This term does not include 16
29	29		birth control devices or oral contraceptives. An act is not an abortion if the act 17
30	30		is done with the intent to do any of the following: 18
31	31		a. Save the life or preserve the health of an unborn child. 19
32	32		b. Remove a dead, unborn child whose death was caused by spontaneous 20
33	33		abortion. 21
34	34		c. Remove an ectopic pregnancy. 22
35	35		(2) Fertilization. – The point in time when a male human sperm penetrates the 23
36	36		zona pellucida of a female human ovum. 24
37	37		(3) Pregnant. – The female human reproductive condition of having a living 25
38	38		unborn child within the female's body during the entire embryonic and fetal 26
39	39		stages of the unborn child's development from fertilization until birth. 27
40	40		(4) Reasonable medical judgment. – A medical judgment made by a reasonably 28
41	41		prudent physician, knowledgeable about a case and the treatment possibilities 29
42	42		for the medical conditions involved. 30
43	43		(5) Unborn child. – An individual living member of the homo sapiens species 31
44	44		from fertilization until birth, including the entire embryonic and fetal stages 32
45	45		of development. 33
46	46		(b) Prohibition. – Except as otherwise provided in subsection (c) of this section, a person 34
47		-	shall not knowingly perform, induce, or attempt an abortion. 35 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025
48		-	Page 2 House Bill 804-First Edition
	47	+	shall not knowingly perform, induce, or attempt an abortion. 35
	48	+	H.B. 804
	49	+	Apr 7, 2025
	50	+	HOUSE PRINCIPAL CLERK General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025
	51	+	Page 2 DRH10004-MLf-6
49	52		(c) Exception to Prohibition. – The prohibition in subsection (b) of this section does not 1
50	53		apply if all of the following requirements are met: 2
51	54		(1) The person performing, inducing, or attempting the abortion is a licensed 3
52	55		physician. 4
53	56		(2) In the exercise of reasonable medical judgment, the pregnant female on whom 5
54	57		the abortion is performed, induced, or attempted has a life-threatening 6
55	58		physical condition aggravated by, caused by, or arising from a pregnancy that 7
56	59		places the female at risk of death or poses a serious risk of substantial 8
57	60		impairment of a major bodily function unless the abortion is performed or 9
58	61		induced. The requirement set forth in this subdivision does not include any 10
59	62		situation where the risk of death or substantial impairment of a major bodily 11
60	63		function arose from a claim or diagnosis that the female would engage in 12
61	64		conduct that may result in the female's death or in substantial impairment of a 13
62	65		major bodily function. 14
63	66		(3) The person performs, induces, or attempts the abortion in a manner that, in the 15
64	67		exercise of reasonable medical judgment, provides the best opportunity for the 16
65	68		unborn child to survive unless, in the reasonable medical judgment, that 17
66	69		manner would create either of the following: 18
67	70		a. A greater risk of the pregnant female's death. 19
68	71		b. A serious risk of substantial impairment of a major bodily function of 20
69	72		the pregnant female. 21
70	73		(d) Accidental or Unintentional Death. – Medical treatment provided to a pregnant 22
71	74		female by a licensed physician that results in the accidental or unintentional injury or death of an 23
72	75		unborn child does not constitute a violation of subsection (b) of this section. 24
73	76		(e) Criminal Punishment. – A violation of subsection (b) of this section that results in the 25
74	77		death of an unborn child is a Class B1 felony. Any other violation of subsection (b) of this section 26
75	78		is a Class B2 felony. 27
76	79		(f) Civil Penalty. – A person who violates subsection (b) of this section is subject to a 28
77	80		civil penalty of not less than one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000) for each violation. The 29
78	81		Attorney General shall file an action to recover a civil penalty assessed under this subsection and 30
79	82		may recover attorneys' fees and costs incurred in bringing the action. The clear proceeds of civil 31
80	83		penalties provided for in this section shall be remitted to the Civil Penalty and Forfeiture Fund 32
81	84		in accordance with G.S. 115C-457.2. 33
82	85		(g) Disciplinary Action. – In addition to any other penalty that may be imposed under 34
83	86		this section, the appropriate licensing authority shall revoke the license, permit, registration, 35
84	87		certificate, or other authority of a physician or other health care professional who performs, 36
85	88		induces, or attempts an abortion in violation of subsection (b) of this section. 37
86	89		(h) Civil Remedies Unaffected. – The fact that conduct is subject to a civil or criminal 38
87	90		penalty under this section does not abolish or impair any remedy for the conduct that is available 39
88	91		in a civil suit. 40
89	92		(i) Construction. – This section shall not be construed to authorize the imposition of 41
90	93		criminal, civil, or administrative liability or penalties on a pregnant female on whom an abortion 42
91	94		is performed, induced, or attempted." 43
92	95		SECTION 2.2. This Part only applies to abortions performed, induced, or attempted 44
93	96		on or after the effective date of this Part. 45
94	97		46
95	98		PART III. CONFORMING CHANGES 47
96	99		SECTION 3.1. G.S. 14-44 and G.S. 14-45 are repealed. 48
97	100		SECTION 3.2. G.S. 14-23.7 reads as rewritten: 49
98	101		"§ 14-23.7. Exceptions. 50 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025
99		-	~~House Bill 804-First Edition~~ Page 3
	102	+	DRH10004-MLf-6 Page 3
100	103		Nothing in this Article shall be construed to permit the prosecution under this Article of any 1
101	104		of the following: 2
102	105		(1) Acts which cause the death of an unborn child if those acts were lawful, 3
103	106		pursuant to the provisions of Article 1I of Chapter 90 of the General 4
104	107		Statutes.G.S. 14-45.2. 5
105	108		… 6
106	109		(3) Acts committed by a pregnant woman with respect to her own unborn child, 7
107	110		including, but not limited to, acts which result in miscarriage or stillbirth by 8
108	111		the woman. The following definitions shall apply in this section: 9
109	112		a. Miscarriage. – The interruption of the normal development of an 10
110	113		unborn child, other than by a live birth, and which is not an induced 11
111	114		abortion permitted under Article 1I of Chapter 90 of the General 12
112	115		Statutes, G.S. 14-45.2, resulting in the complete expulsion or 13
113	116		extraction from a pregnant woman of the unborn child. 14
114	117		b. Stillbirth. – The death of an unborn child prior to the complete 15
115	118		expulsion or extraction from a woman, irrespective of the duration of 16
116	119		pregnancy and which is not an induced abortion permitted under 17
117	120		Article 1I of Chapter 90 of the General Statutes.G.S. 14-45.2." 18
118	121		SECTION 3.3. G.S. 131E-269 is repealed. 19
119	122		SECTION 3.4. G.S. 131E-272 reads as rewritten: 20
120	123		"§ 131E-272. Initial licensure fees for new facilities. 21
121	124		The following fees are initial licensure fees for new facilities and are applicable as follows: 22
122	125		Number Initial Initial 23
123	126		Facility Type of Beds License Fee Bed Fee 24
124	127		… 25
125	128		Abortion Clinics - $850.00 $ - 26
126	129		…." 27
127	130		SECTION 3.5. Article 1I of Chapter 90 of the General Statutes is repealed. 28
128	131		SECTION 3.6. Article 1K of Chapter 90 of the General Statutes is repealed. 29
129	132		SECTION 3.7. Part 4A of Article 6 of Chapter 131E of the General Statutes is 30
130	133		repealed. 31
131	134		SECTION 3.8. This Part only applies to abortions performed, induced, or attempted 32
132	135		on or after the effective date of this Part. 33
133	136		34
134	137		PART IV. SEVERABILITY AND EFFECTIVE DATE 35
135	138		SECTION 4.1. If any provision of this act or its application is held invalid, the 36
136	139		invalidity does not affect other provisions or applications of this act that can be given effect 37
137	140		without the invalid provisions or application and, to this end, the provisions of this act are 38
138	141		severable. 39
139	142		SECTION 4.2. This act becomes effective July 1, 2025. 40